The present invention relates to a wide-type thermal-transfer printer in which a fixed thermal head prints with use of an ink ribbon moving relatively to the fixed thermal head.
Conventionally, a fixed thermal head whose transverse dimension is greater than its longitudinal dimension is used to print heat-sensitive paper being transported in the longitudinal direction of the head. As is generally known, a bar code is printed on a label sheet made of heat-sensitive paper having its transverse length greater than its longitudinal length. A number of such label sheets are pasted on a base sheet, longitudinally adjoining each other, and are fed longitudinally for bar-code printing so that their longitudinal direction is in line with that of the thermal head. The bar code is printed on each label sheet in a manner such that each bar of the code extends in the longitudinal direction. In the bar-code printing by means of a prior art wide-type thermaltransfer printer, however, ordinary paper (not heatsensitive) cannot be used as a material for the label sheets.
For the use of ordinary paper in the thermal-head printing, the ink ribbon used must be one which is formed by applying thermal ink to base film. However, the width of conventional ink ribbons is much narrower than the transverse length of the wide-type thermal head. Narrow ribbons cannot be used in the wide-type thermal printer.
Preferably, an ink ribbon used in the printer of this type has a width substantially equal to or more than the transverse dimension of the wide-type thermal head, and is fed longitudinally in a manner such that its longitudinal direction is in line with that of the head.